


Maybe I Deserved it, but What About Her?

by Ayzbraiker



Category: Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure (Cartoon)
Genre: Gen, Oop, i only just realised how tags work, im salty, rapunzel is kinda a jerk in this one, varian gets swept under the rug
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-19
Updated: 2020-05-19
Packaged: 2021-03-03 01:53:08
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,011
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24266953
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ayzbraiker/pseuds/Ayzbraiker
Summary: Varian is upset and tries to talk with Rapunzel but she just doesn't get it.
Relationships: Rapunzel & Varian (Disney)
Comments: 9
Kudos: 101





	Maybe I Deserved it, but What About Her?

**Author's Note:**

> Prompt by thejakzzofdumpsterfirezz on Tumblr
> 
> Help. I'm still salty

The kingdom courtyard was lit with a warm light. Not a single normally dark crook was left untouched. Lanterns hung under the sky. Laughter and music filled the night. 

A farewell party was being thrown, the guest of honor? Cassandra, the ex-handmaiden, ex-guard, and ex-traitor. (how the title of traitor could be removed so casually was a mystery to Varian)

The Royal Engineer stood at the gates of the party, feeling sick to his stomach. Upon arriving, he gave Cassandra a small parting gift, a pleasant goodbye, and then proceeded to leave. Ruddiger was trotting by his heels. 

With his mind clouded with troubling thoughts, he sat down under a large tree, just a stroll away from all the buzz of the party. His chest felt thick and achingly uncomfortable, so he decided on calming himself before returning to his chambers. 

“I wouldn’t be able to enjoy the party,” he told his raccoon friend. “I'm so- so _angry_ at Cassandra. I just can’t stand to see her like this.”

“Yeah, I’m sad to see her leave too.”

“Rapunzel!” he chuckled nervously, “I didn’t hear you coming.” The boy was scared for a moment, thinking maybe she overheard his feelings about her best friend, but that thought faded quickly at her warm smile. In this time, he noticed his companion scampering off to meet his Royal guard, horse friend. 

“It’s strange, don’t you think? I’m so happy she’s finding her own destiny, but it’s sad to see her go.”

In the long second that passed, Varian struggled to chide himself into agreeing with her.

“Ah, well ‘happy’ is a bit of a stretch.” He winced at his own words. 

It was only ment to be a flick at first, a dart in an attempt to vaguely catch her expression, but the shocked and cold look in the princess’s eyes, made him freeze.  _ Dang it Varian! Why would you say that? _

Throat suddenly tense, he forced out his next words. “Don’t get me wrong! Cassandra deserves a happy future.”

“Varian…” her tone, biting. A subtle warning, but he didn’t understand its origin, so boy kept going.

“Well...by how the story was told, the part that  _ I  _ heard  anyway, Cass was only sorry  _ after  _ she lost," Varian quipped very matter-of-factly. 

He waited, wanting her to tell him there was  _ more to it, _ but Rapunzel stayed silent.

“And I get it. I get that when I lost, I went down on a bitter note, I was angry. I-I hated you and I had to be stopped. But when Cass lost,” his voice strained, “well, you hugged it out-”

Here, Rapunzel was quick to reply. “Of course,” Her eyes watched him carefully, her tongue sharp. “Varian, Cass is my best friend. If you’re saying-” 

“What about ME?" he cut in. " _ I was alone _ , and my only consultant was a raccoon. Everyone else turned their backs on me! On top of that, you were  _ supposed to be my friend!” _

“Varian," her tone was scolding and urgent. Like a hasty attempt to clean up a mess. "you  _ know _ I couldn’t help you! Corona was in a state of crisis! I wasn't able to just leave.”

“That’s not- That is  _ not  _ what I’m talking about, Rapunzel. I was on my own. I did a lot of bad things, but I was _alone_ , and you looked at me like I was some sort of  _ monster _ , Rapunzel. I had Ruddiger, but even then, there was no one who believed I was still in there. No one _came to pull me back to sanity_.”

“I-” he wasn’t done.

“You had an undying faith for Cassandra. I’ve  _ seen  _ it. You always believed she’d come back.”

“Cass is my  _ best friend, of course  _ I never gave up on her.”

Varian felt his eyebrow twitch at her words. “How is that- How is that  _ fair _ !? You’re telling me, if my dad got caught in the amber a little later in the year, if we shared more ‘bonding’ moments, I wouldn’t have ended up in prison?”

“Varian!” she looked bewildered, betrayed by this very conversation. “I had NO control over what happened. My dad was the king. And you- I know my dad can be harsh...but that’s just how-”

_ “Yeah _ and you  _ left  _ me with him. You can’t possibly believe there was nothing you could do.”

“I didn’t ask to be a princess, Varian. I was locked in a tower for 18 years of my life. Back then, I was new and unprepared. I’m human, I’m  _ sorry  _ I make mistakes.”

His response was slow, and quiet. “ _Yeah_? Well, I was  _ fourteen  _ and _I'm_ sorry I made mistakes .”

Her once chearful demeaned from aproahing him was gone. Now, her face was red and set in a frustrated scowl. The teen's eyes widened, thinking back on everything he said. The words  _ too far _ crossed his mind. Unclenching his teeth, he gripped his knees in an uneased manner. 

“Look, Rapunzel, I know things have changed since my arrest. You are different from your dad, and I trust your decisions. I do. But I can’t forget how I fought. How hard I had to fight to pull myself away from that dark, awful place I was in. How I had to do it alone. Cass, she attacked us, kidnapped me, and almost killed you and Eugene. I can’t be the judge of whose crimes were worse, but all I know is she did  _ nothing  _ to win your favor. In fact! She never lost it! And-  _ It’s not fair _ . Cass is more personal to you, I cannot in any way change that. It just- It  _ hurts _ . It’s not  _ fair _ .”

The princess ran a hand down her face, tired and wanting to get away. “I’m sorry you went through what you did and that you feel this way, but like you said, ‘things have changed.’ You can’t take your anger out on Cass for what you did in the past. And I can’t make that go away,” she paused, regret on her face. “but I’m glad we had this talk.”

  
  


**Author's Note:**

> Is she sorry? Like. At all? 
> 
> And yes. The ending is supposed to be disappointing. That way, you can suffer like how Varian is
> 
> EDIT: BE DISAPPOINTED NO FURTHER  
> Sequal by ForestStars! https://archiveofourown.org/works/24296605  
> It's soooooo goooood

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [Set Ourselves Free](https://archiveofourown.org/works/24296605) by [ForestStars](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ForestStars/pseuds/ForestStars)




End file.
